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Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Arizona Diamondbacks fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

At the time of writing (during the early stages of Friday’s game in Houston), the Diamondbacks have scored a total of five runs across the last 38 innings at the plate. It’s therefore no great surprise that the results in this week’s poll focused on the team’s clutch hitting – or lack thereof – as far and away being the most important thing for the team as we negotiate our way through the final months of the season. Part of this is perhaps recency bias, with this week’s struggles being undeniable: they literally went the entire series against Philadelphia without an RISP hit. But can anything be done?

First though, here’s how you voted.

Brought to you by FanDuel

Here’s how the team’s number with runners in scoring position have broken down over each month of the season so far, along with their rank in MLB

• April: .291/.341/.561 = .902 OPS (#1)
• May: .270/.347/.422 = .769 OPS (#8)
• June: .162/.288/.259 = .548 OPS (#29)
• July: .237/.323/.388 = .711 OPS (#21)
• August: .248/.324/.472 = .797 (#5)

As you can see, it’s all over the place. They were actually pretty good in these situations last month. All told, they are +34 points with RISP, compared to overall: .744 OPS vs. .710. Both figures are actually pretty close to average, because teams generally do hit a bit better with runners in scoring position, compared to normal. The respective figures across all of MLB were .742 and .719. So, I’d expect Arizona’s numbers to come back to that over the rest of September. If anyone has to worry about regression to the mean down the stretch, it’s probably the Phillies, who come into play this weekend almost a hundred points better with RISP (.811 vs. .713).

Personally, I’m more curious to see how the starting rotation shapes up. The return of Corbin Burnes and Michael Soroka should provide a boost, given how shaky the replacements in the rotation have been. Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt and Merrill Kelly have combined for 68 starts and an ERA of 3.55, going into Friday night’s game. Discounting Soroka’s 18 starts, everyone else in the rotation has made 55 starts and a 5.54 ERA. So you don’t need Cy Young caliber pitching from Corbin to be helpful. What matters is, the bar for Burnes and Soroka to improve on who they are replacing, is not high. And that’s discounting entirely Zac Gallen and his pre-IL ERA of 6.34.

It’s time for the second of three games between the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets, and here’s hoping it goes better than the first game did.

Taking the mound for the Giants is right-hander Anthony Molina, the 24-year old who came to the Giants in the Tyler Mahle trade. In two games with the Giants, Molina is 2-0 with a 2.89 ERA, a 3.31 FIP, and seven strikeouts to just one walk in 9.1 innings.

For the Mets, it’s left-hander Zac Thornton, a 24-year old in his first MLB season. Thornton, who was taken in the fifth round of the 2023 draft, has made 11 starts this year, and is 3-4 with a 2.93 ERA, a 3.89 FIP, and 45 strikeouts to 14 walks in 61.1 innings. In his last start, Thornton gave up two runs in five innings against the Houston Astros.

Enjoy the baseball, everyone!

Game #143

Who: San Francisco Giants (58-84) vs. New York Mets (64-77)

Where: Citi Field, Queens, New York

When: 1:10 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

The Yankees lost in walk-off fashion to San Diego on Friday night, but they might not have played extras had it not been for a misplay that allowed the Padres to score their only run of the initial nine innings. With two outs in the second, Xander Bogaerts got under a pitch from Max Fried on what could charitably be described as a flare to center. It was a ball that most center fielders would’ve at minimum come close to and have the chance for a diving catch.

But for the Yankees, Trent Grisham was in center field, and while he was once an elite defender, he has been far from that in 2026. It didn’t help that he was playing a guy with an 82 OPS+ and only 11 homers far too deep, but regardless, he was clearly not moving well on the play. The ball dipped in with ease and Ty France scored. When the half-inning ended, Grisham spoke to the team trainer and disappeared down the dugout tunnel. Soon, the Yankees announced that Grisham was dealing with discomfort in his right hamstring, the same one that sent him to the IL earlier in 2026. It’s been an uneven year on the whole for Grisham, who has hit .211/.308/.395 with 18 homers but only a 95 OPS+.

Now, we know that Grisham is indeed heading back to the IL. Jasson Domínguez will fly from Scranton to San Diego to rejoin the team and take Grisham’s spot on the roster. The former top prospect had an injury of his own earlier in 2026, but when given the chance to play, he did not acquit himself well, batting just .230/.270/.380 with a 79 OPS+ and exactly 0.0 rWAR.

It might only be a short-term stay for Domínguez since it seems like Aaron Judge is tracking to return to the team soon (though New York has made no announcements) and there’s only so much roster flexibility at the moment. But for now, Domínguez will serve as outfield depth, though Spencer Jones will likely get the lion’s share of time in center with Grisham out. Cody Bellinger is a candidate for some center field time as well, though he did bang himself up a bit on a foul ball last night too.

Update

The Yankees have released a Sunday update on Grisham’s injury, and it’s not a promising one. It’s a Grade 2 hamstring strain, which—as beat reporter Greg Joyce noted—cost him three weeks last time around in June. Being that there are three weeks remaining in regular season, it’s easy to put two and two together.

And even if Grisham is somewhat back up to speed by three weeks through, would it actually make sense to throw him straight into a playoff game? Rehab games aren’t available at that time, and the Arizona Fall League option isn’t there until October 3rd either. It wasn’t that long ago that the Yankees tried to get Matt Carpenter and DJ LeMahieu healthy in time for the 2022 playoffs, only for it to end in disaster (Carpenter’s 1-for-12 with nine K’s) or absence anyway (LeMahieu). Jones can be frustrating at time, but he may just be the safest option regardless come October. To quote one of Aaron Boone’s most overused phrases this year, “We’ll see.”

What. A. Game. The San Diego Padres edged out the New York Yankees in a pitcher’s duel on Friday night. It was a win the Friars desperately needed after dropping their series against the Cincinnati Reds earlier this week. Starters Walker Buehler and Max Fried went toe to toe, each allowing a run. Their respective bullpens locked it down, forcing extra-innings drama.

The Yankees quickly got on the board in the 10th with a Spencer Jones RBI single. The onus was then on the Padres to tie the game in the bottom of the tenth. They did that, and more. Luis Campusano, after throwing out three Yanks on the basepaths, hit a two-run homer into deep right field off of Paul Blackburn. It was a walk off for San Diego, the first in quite some time. Hopefully, it’s the turning point that the Padres need.

Taking the mound

Carlos Rodón (NYY) v. Robbie Ray (SD)

Rodón has spent much of the 2026 season stuck on the injured list. He’s made three starts since returning from his most recent stint, pitching to a 2.84 ERA during that time. That’s just a little higher than his 3.20 ERA this season. When he’s been on the field, Rodón has looked stellar.

That said, the Yankees’ starter has yet to work through six innings since June 10 against the Cleveland Guardians. Rodón has yet to pitch five innings since returning from the IL. But, in the time he has spent on the mound, he’s dominated. The bigger question for New York will be if their bullpen can hang on.

Since being traded to the Padres, Ray has looked great. He’s cemented himself as a valuable contributor to San Diego’s starting rotation, pitching to a 3.42 ERA through five starts. Most of that damage came in his first start (4 ER, 5.0 IP). Without that start, Ray’s ERA with the Padres goes down to 2.53 clip.

Ray has reinvented himself this season, owning a 3.14 ERA through 149 innings pitched. Most of that time was in San Francisco, where Ray was the de facto ace while Logan Webb struggled all season. He’s been dominant from the left side of the mound and will look to continue that against a potent Yankees lineup.

Batter up!

Ty France, per usual, had a productive night at the plate. The star first baseman went 2-for-3, scoring the lone run the Padres had in the first nine innings. The game would never have gone to extras if France had straightened out a fourth-inning foul ball from Fried just a little. He missed a home run by inches that would have been the winning run. The Friars ended up getting the job done anyways.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
2. Samad Taylor, LF
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Ty France, 1B
5. Jackson Merrill, CF
6. Xander Bogaerts, SS
7. Freddy Fermin, C
8. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
9. Ethan Salas, DH

The lineup, despite struggling against Fried, put together some decent offense against New York. That said, the Friars struggled to score in any of their opportunities, going 2-for-7 at the plate. That being said, San Diego will have an opportunity to turn that around versus Rodón tonight.

Relief corps

The Padres’ bullpen locked it down after Buehler departed. Yuki Matsui, Bradgley Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller pitched four scoreless innings before heading into the 10th inning. Miller pitched an (almost) immaculate ninth inning, throwing nine strikes but inducing a fly out from Ben Rice instead of a strike out. Miller gave up a run in the 10th due to the ghost runner, but quickly locked it down afterwards.

That leaves San Diego with plenty of options to turn to for Game 2. Jhony Brito, Griffin Canning, Kyle Hart, David Morgan and Wandy Peralta will all be available for manager Craig Stammen. None of them have pitched particularly well in high-leverage situations. Though, with the way Ray has been pitching, the Padres should be alright.

Mets lineup

Francisco Lindor – SS
Juan Soto – LF
Bo Bichette – DH
Carson Benge – RF
Jared Young – 1B
Marcus Semien – 2B
A.J. Ewing – CF
Francisco Alvarez – C
Brett Baty – 3B

Zac Thornton – LHP

Giants lineup

Jonah Cox – CF
Rafael Devers – DH
Bryce Eldridge – 1B
Jung Hoo Lee – RF
Shay Whitcomb – 3B
Turner Hill – LF
Andrew Knizner – C
Osleivis Basabe – 2B
Christian Koss – SS

Anthony Molina – RHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 4:10pm EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

Shohei Ohtani is the biggest piece of the Dodgers puzzle, whether he pitches or not. He’s the team’s best hitter by a sizable distance, and getting him right for the postseason is of the utmost importance.

So as he potentially sits for a third straight game for the first time since joining the Dodgers, let’s take a look at who has filled in at designated hitter at the times when Ohtani hasn’t batted, whether by days off or on some days he was pitching earlier in the year.

Ohtani is hitting .279/.382/.526 with 30 home runs in his 128 starts at designated hitter. Eight different players have combined for the other 13 starts at DH, plus various late-game fill-ins over the course of the year, have hit .276/.344/.534 with three home runs and six doubles in 64 plate appearances. In other words, they’ve held their own so far in the small sample size.

Facing left-handed starting pitchers the last two nights, the right-handed Alex Call started at DH, and the left-handed Dalton Rushing pinch-hit later in the game. Rushing has played in all four games since getting activated on Tuesday, and is hitless in four at-bats, with three strikeouts and a hit by pitch. He started three times at DH earlier this season.

Other Dodgers at DH

• Dalton Rushing 3 starts, 16 PA, 2-for-16, double, home run, 4 RBI
• Alex Call 2 starts, 10 PA, 2-for-9, 2 doubles, 1 walk
• Teoscar Hernández 2 starts, 8 PA, 4-for-7, home run, 2 RBI, 1 walk
• Will Smith 2 starts, 8 PA, 2-for-6, double, home run, RBI, 2 walks
• Miguel Rojas 1 start, 5 PA, 3-for-5, 2 doubles, RBI
• Ryan Ward 1 start, 5 PA, 0-for-3, 2 walks
• Santiago Espinal 1 start, 5 PA, 2-for-5, 2 RBI
• Andy Pages 1 start, 4 PA, 1-for-4, RBI
• Tommy Edman 0-for-1
• Chuckie Robinson 0-for-1
• Ben Rortvedt 0-for-1

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Nationals
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Start time: 6:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Facing the righty Zack Wheeler, instead of the lefty Sanchez, the Braves are returning lefty hitters to places of prominence in their lineup. Drake Baldwin returns to the leadoff spot, Michael Harris returns to the lineup at the cleanup spot, and Dominic Smith takes the DH spot.

The Phillies only made minor personnel and positioning tweaks, going from facing the lefty Sale to another lefty Perez.

Game Info

Game Time: Saturday, September 5th, 6:05 p.m. ET

Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pa.

Watch: BravesVision

Radio/Audio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan

Rod Barajas celebrates his 51st birthday today.

Barajas spent two seasons with the Blue Jays from 2008 to 2009, during a 14-year major league career.

In 2008, the Jays signed Barajas as a backup to Gregg Zaun. Around that time, three significant events occurred:

1. Zaun missed about three weeks with an injury.
2. The Jays fired John Gibbons and hired Cito Gaston.
3. Barajas hit a little hot streak.

Like many catchers, Barajas was a streaky hitter. In May 2008, he hit .370/.424/.630—numbers that exceeded his usual performance, but the timing was ideal. With a new manager in Cito Gaston, first impressions mattered, and Barajas seized his opportunity by playing daily and impressing Gaston. Although his numbers dipped to .179/.188/.269 in July, he had already won over Cito. Zaun, meanwhile, was understandably unhappy about losing his job due to injury.

Barajas may have been the better choice regardless—he was an excellent defensive catcher, throwing out 34% of base stealers during his two seasons with the Jays. He was tough, skilled at blocking the plate, and a solid receiver with occasional power. After the season, Zaun departed as a free agent.

Barajas posted a .237/.275/.406 slash line over 229 games with Toronto, hitting 30 home runs, driving in 120 runs, walking 37 times, and striking out 137 times across those two seasons.

Over his 14-year career, Barajas hit .235/.284/.407 with 136 home runs and 480 RBI, playing for seven different teams.

Candy Maldonado celebrates his 66th birthday today.

Maldonado played three seasons for the Blue Jays, joining the team via a trade from the Brewers on August 9, 1991, in exchange for Bob Wishnevski and William Suero (obscure names, even for die-hard fans). He played for Toronto during the 1992 World Series season before leaving as a free agent, only to re-sign at the start of the 1995 season.

The standout season was 1992, when Maldonado hit .272/.357/.462 with 20 home runs and 66 RBI in 137 games, primarily in left field. While not an outstanding outfielder, he did lead the AL in assists that year with 12. In the ALCS, he batted .273/.360/.545 with 2 home runs and 6 RBI. His World Series performance dipped to .158/.238/.316 with 1 home run and 2 RBI, but all was forgiven thanks to the championship—and his lone World Series ring.

I always liked Maldonado. He may not have been a superstar, but he certainly had his moments. As a Blue Jay, he hit .272/.363/.462 with 34 home runs and 119 RBI in 250 games. Over his 15-year career, he posted a .254/.322/.424 line with 146 home runs and 618 RBI in 1,410 games. He is a member of both the Caribbean Baseball Hall of Fame and the Puerto Rico Hall of Fame.

Happy Birthday to both Rod Barajas and Candy Maldonado.

The New York Yankees didn’t really make too much noise before the 2026 trade deadline. They added a slugging first baseman in Luis García Jr., an outfielder in Heliot Ramos, and not much else. They failed to bring in significant additions to the rotation and bullpen, which was ‘addressed’ with cheap free-agent signing Michael Fulmer and waiver claim John Schreiber well after August 3.

For this exercise, let’s focus on the major trades, namely García and Ramos, and a third player who was called up from Triple-A Scranton but has been, essentially and for all intents and purposes, a post-deadline acquisition: shortstop George Lombard Jr.

Luis García Jr.

The lefty slugger has been the best player the Bombers acquired at or around the trade deadline. The 26-year-old masher started his breakout in the nation’s capital and continued it in the Bronx. He has hit, before Friday’s game, a robust .292/.337/.500 with five home runs and a 132 wRC+ in pinstripes.

García had flirted with above-average power numbers in the past, but he had never put together such a strong season until 2026, making him a bit of a gamble for the Yankees. So far, it’s safe to say it has paid off big-time, as he has given the team a reliable, productive left-handed slugger to plug and play in the middle of the lineup.

During times when the Yanks missed some key power hitters, including the still-absent Aaron Judge, García has proved to be a useful hitter.

Heliot Ramos

While García’s arrival has been a hit, the same can’t be said about Ramos. The outfielder is struggling to the tune of a .141/.286/.266 with a home run, a 27.3 percent strikeout rate, a 61 wRC+, and -0.5 fWAR. He has been with the Yankees for a month, yet he’s already their least valuable position player by fWAR.

If we see Ramos’ performance with the Yankees without context, he has been a disaster. However, it’s important to point out that since August 20, he has been hitting a solid .227/.370/.455 with a homer, two doubles, and a 136 wRC+ in 27 plate appearances. His expected stats also suggest he’s been quite unlucky in New York; he’s got a perfectly solid .338 expected wOBA as a Yankee. See, for instance, the hardest-hit double play ball in the majors this year:

Perhaps if we give him some more time, his overall stat line would look a lot better.

Ramos isn’t much of a defender, and he isn’t particularly fast, either, but in time, he’ll prove that he’s a fine hitter with power. His role will undoubtedly diminish when Aaron Judge returns from injury, though.

George Lombard Jr.

The Yankees decided to start the Lombard clock on August 4, right after the deadline. And what a ride it has been. He started his MLB tenure on fire, with highlight-reel defensive plays and two homers in his first four games.

After a few weeks, his offensive performance started to diminish, and he had a .253/.310/.367 line with a 90 wRC+ on Tuesday, when he had to depart a game after injuring his knee. He dodged a bullet and, after missing a few days, returned to the lineup on Friday.

The Yankees are committed to letting him develop at the MLB level. After all, he made light work of Double-A and Triple-A pitchers this year.

Lombard is the Yankees’ shortstop of the future. He’s an extremely young player, and he may make mistakes in bunches, but the potential is there for him to impact games both offensively and defensively (and on the basepaths, too) for a long time.

Today’s roster move: Here

Saturday notes…

• IT’S BEEN A WHILE: A win today will be the Cubs’ third in a row. They have not won three straight since Aug. 9-12, when they won at Kansas City, 10-2, and after a day off won at Washington, 8-6 and 12-6. They have played 21 games since the last of those wins, going 9-12, including back-to-back wins twice, Aug. 17-18 at home vs. the White Sox and Aug. 23-24 at Seattle, then Arizona. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• DAY vs. NIGHT: The Cubs are just 31-30 in day games, a stark difference from their 49-32 at night. They are 9-14 in day games on the road but 7-9 in day games on the road following night games. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• GETTING AHEAD AND STAYING AHEAD: The Cubs never trailed in their wins Thursday and Friday. They had not done that in consecutive games since July 27-28, when they won at St. Louis, 7-3 and 10-2. They have played 35 games since then, going 19-16. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• JUST ONE RUN: The Cubs have allowed one run in each of the last two games. They had allowed no more than one in back-to-back games twice before this season, April 19-20 and June 12-13. They have given up one or zero runs in 15 total games, one of every 9.5 they have played. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: Frank Schwindel’s seventh-inning grand slam, his third homer in a series against the Pirates in which he went 10-for-18 and was named NL Player of the Week, erased an 8-7 deficit and gave the Cubs a 11-8 win over the Pirates at Wrigley Field. It happened five years ago today, Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021.

Cubs lineup:

Marlins lineup:

Javier Assad, RHP vs. Ryan Gusto, RHP

In the words we used to use all the time for Kyle Hendricks: “All he does is get guys out.”

That really does apply to Javier Assad, who returns to make this start. The assumption I make is that the Cubs are pushing Clay Holmes, whose turn it would have been today, back so he can start in Milwaukee sometime next week.

Assad has been up and down from Triple-A Iowa multiple times this year. However, in the major leagues since May 1, here are his numbers: 2.24 ERA, 0.995 WHIP, 6.0 percent walk rate. A few too many home runs (12 in 64.1 innings) but out of his 17 outings since May 1, he allowed one or no runs in 12 of them and the Cubs are 15-2 in those games.

Go get ‘em, Javier.

Ryan Gusto was an 11th-round pick of the Astros in 2019 and came to the Marlins at the 2025 Trade Deadline in the deal that sent Jesus Sanchez to Houston.

He’s been in 19 games (14 starts) this year with middling results. Gusto pitched four innings in relief against the Cubs June 28, 2025 in Houston and allowed seven hits and four runs, including a two-run homer by Seiya Suzuki.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit the Marlins site Fish On First. If you do go there to interact with Marlins fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

For all the talk about resurgent players (Lawrence Butler, Zack Gelof, Jacob Lopez), back sliding players (Luis Morales, Jack Perkins), and a hitting core with elite talent but only decent results (Nick Kurtz/Shea Langeliers/Jacob Wilson/Tyler Soderstrom/Brent Rooker), the A’s fortunes in the near future may lie with some prospects who are fast-tracking themselves towards 2027 relevance.

Without a doubt the A’s have a projected lineup for 2027-28 that could be imposing but so far has only been “middle of the pack” and with even less of a doubt the pitching has been bottom of the barrel in most statistical categories.

What the A’s are hoping to accomplish is to mirror, somewhat, the Chicago White Sox’ arc, rising from the depths of 100 loss territory to challenge for the division title soon after. On one hand, the White Sox did take 2 years, not 1, to go “last to first” but on the other hand they were coming from a record 121 losses.

This quartet of A’s prospects have in common that they would not normally be on a “2027 ETA” timeline and that they are very much poised to make an impact in 2027. And if they do, the A’s could be putting an awful lot of star talent on the field. In alphabetical order:

Jamie Arnold

Arnold is a key one to watch simply because he is a starting pitcher and nowhere is the need greater for the A’s than the front of the rotation. Arnold was just drafted in 2025 and only debuted in April, 2026 with an aggressive promotion to AA Midland.

Perhaps partly as a result of the aggressiveness of the assignment, Arnold sputtered some at the outset but he has come on like gangbusters of late and recently earned a promotion to AAA. With a 2.31 June ERA, a solid 3.54 ERA in July, and and a stellar 1.57 ERA in August, Arnold put a bow on his second half surge with 5 shutout innings in his PCL debut.

With a handful of AAA starts under his belt to end this season, it’s not inconceivable Arnold could vie for a spot in the A’s rotation out of camp in 2027, with the more likely outcome that he will be on the Gage Jump “first man up” track. Either way Arnold has a good chance to significantly impact the 2027 rotation, hopefully along side Jump, JT Ginn, and Jacob Lopez.

Drew Burress

2 months ago Burress hadn’t even yet been drafted by the A’s and yet his debut in Stockton has been so fantastic it’s not hard to envision a scenario where he begins the 2027 season at AA (or gets there within the first month) and forces his way up to the big leagues mid-season.

If this sounds overly aggressive, remember that Kurtz and Wilson shot through the minors at this rate and Burress matches their 1st round pedigree. In 26 games so far, Burress is crushing pitching to the tune of a .314/.453/.637 slash line with 7 HR and 14 stolen bases in 15 attempts.

The 28.5% K rate needs some work, and A ball is nowhere near MLB, but if Burress gets to AA in April and picks up where he is leaving off in September, he could well be in the big leagues sometime in 2027 giving the A’s another explosively athletic outfielder.

Leo De Vries

De Vries only started his pro career in 2024 and he did so at age 17, which would suggest a typical ETA of around 2029. But De Vries is no typical prospect, ranked top 3 in all of MLB.

Only injuries (finger, shoulder) stopped him from being a possible call up in 2026 and if he is fully healthy come spring training, the question will be “when” not “if” he will be called up to the big leagues in 2027.

Devin Taylor

Taylor is mashing and hasn’t let up all year, starting in A+, continuing in AA, and now making a mockery of AAA. At Lansing, Taylor earned a promotion by hitting .292/.425/.436 in 57 games. At Midland he found yet another gear, slashing .323/.409/.534 with 14 HR in 68 games. In 3 AAA games he’s 6 for 14 with 2 HR.

There are questions around Taylor’s LF glove, but if he can rake at the big league level the A’s can find a spot for the LH slugger even if it’s heavily utilizing the DH position, just as the Astros have done with the elite hitting/shaky fielding Yordan Alvarez and the Phillies have done with the similarly profiling Kyle Schwarber.

Already the A’s have quite a bit of enviable raw talent on the field with Kurtz at 1B, Wilson at SS, Langeliers at C, Soderstrom in LF, Henry Bolte in CF, Gelof somewhere on the infield and Butler looking, for the past half season, like the player the A’s saw and quickly inked to a multi-year extension.

Add Arnold, Burress, De Vries, and Taylor throughout the season and 2027 could have a plethora of star upside — upside that needs to be harnessed, mind you, upside that has to stay healthy. But in terms of potential to impact the AL West? These fast-trackers could be changing the landscape in a big way. Soon.